And Nothing Happened

Ever wonder what would happen if you told the guy who's miserable job was to put a stripe through your receipt in highlighter neon pink to go pound sand?

I was at Fry's the other day and I just told the guy "I'm not in the mood" and walked out. Nothing happened. It felt good.

Ok, for the legally curious, here's the way I see it. In a nutshell, a claim of false imprisonment may lie against someone who intentionally causes you to be confined for an unreasonable period of time within defined boundaries and with the plaintiff's knowledge of the confinement. So, if I call the receipt guy at the front of the store a son of a motherless goat and simply walk off and then he has security tackle me and hold me...hmmm...sounds like a case of false imprisonment, right? Here's the rub. Shopkeepers have a privilege that modifies the usual rule as applied to them. Shopkeepers may detain ayone they suspect of shoplifting in order to ascertain the facts so long as it is done on reasonable grounds and for a reasonable time.

So here's my theory. The reason you have to wait in line twice--the second time at the door waiting for that pimply-faced kid to put a stupid highlighter stripe through your receipt--is so that the store can later claim it was acting reasonably when they detain you. So back to Fry's. The security guard could have tackled me to the ground (reasonable force in defense of property), held me for a couple hours (probably reasonable time) and claimed they were acting reasonably since my refusal to have my receipt "verified" (stupid good-for-nothing- and totally meaningless stripe) creates sufficient suspicion that I have something to hide for them to sick their security goons on me.

So, all they're doing is covering their ass. Way to go lawyers.